Donate

BCM&CC preserves the story of Bruce County’s history for future generations to discover and enjoy.  Many items are rotated on display in our 12,000 sq. ft exhibit space.  When not on display, items are stored in archival-grade housing materials, within temperature and humidity-controlled secure storage areas, best suited for long-term preservation.

To make artefacts more accessible to the public, we make item descriptions and images available to view on the Online Collections website.  For archival records and photographs, descriptions are uploaded to Online Collections to enable researchers to discover items available to view in the Research Room at the Museum.  Images or digital copies may also be uploaded for public online viewing, depending on copyright status and other factors which may be discussed at the time of donation.

We welcome donations of items that reflect life within Bruce County’s communities, from past to present, including the experiences of all cultures.  The items must relate directly to the Bruce County and its residents’ or visitors’ experiences.

Types of archival records include original documents, photographs, maps, architectural drawings, sound recordings and moving images (such as films and videos), pamphlets, minutes, financial records, reports, postcards, and many other kinds of records.

Types of three-dimensional objects that the museum collects include objects that were created within the County, used within County businesses, or represent County celebrations, landmarks, cultural heritage, or Natural History.

Ownership of the objects and/or records must be clear, and the rightful owner must be willing to enter into a donation agreement with BCM&CC.

Please also consider donating items, stories, photographs or videos reflecting your experiences during the Covid-19 Pandemic.  For more information about this collection initiative, visit:  brucemuseum.ca\shareyourstory

Following our Archives and Collections Collecting Plans and Collections Management Policy, we do not accept:

• Items that are already duplicated in our collection;
• Items for which we already have a sufficient representative sampling, such as English language Bibles and school textbooks or ladies’ scarves and petticoats;
• Items in very poor condition that would prevent BCM&CC from providing access to them, or with contaminations that could threaten other items in the collection (i.e. mould, pest infestation, extreme brittleness);
• Items with no direct relevancy to Bruce County, including Royal Family scrapbooks, for example;
• Photocopies of materials printed from books or online sources. An emphasis is on original source material.
• Unidentified photographs or an excessive number of photographs reflecting the same people or event; a selection of photographs reflecting the event or people may be selected by the donor or archives staff during a donor meeting.

Due to limited storage capacity, we will no longer accept:

Large objects such as furniture, agricultural implements, floor radios, baby carriages, and large textiles

• Yes, we cannot accept boxes of unorganized papers, or collections of unorganized digital files. Feel free to contact Archives staff for guidance on arranging your paper records and materials.
• Duplicated and confidential records should also be removed.
• Paper records should be unfolded and unrolled (where possible), and removed from bindings like elastics or strings.
• For larger donations of paper items or photographs, we encourage donors to create lists that include item descriptions, dates, and information about the individuals or organizations that created or used them. Often donors have information about items’ contents or context that add value to the items for future researchers, and assists staff in assessing historical significance. These lists can be reviewed by staff before, or at the time of donation.
• In most circumstances, frames will not be accepted – speak to Archives staff about whether items should be removed from frames before donating.

Photographs should come with accompanying identification about the names, event, place, and date, if known.

• Currently we are collecting digital photographs, sound recordings, and moving images (films and videos). Other digital records will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and acceptance may depend on file type and organization. In some cases, we request that vital records, such as minutes, by-laws, and financial records, also be donated in print form, due to the untested nature of long-term preservation of electronic files.
• Procedures for the intake of digital files are still developing. Please contact Archives to discuss the born-digital records you would like to offer for donation. Some suggestions you may receive are:
  • Digital records should be organized with consistent folder and file names, that arrange the digital files in a sensible order (such as chronological order, where necessary). For example, YYYY-MM-DD-minutes could be included in the file name
  • Consecutive textual files may be combined into one document, at the donor’s discretion (For example, one year’s worth of monthly minutes may be saved in one document instead of 12 documents). 
  • If camera-assigned file names (such as IMG- or DSC-) are kept, they should be accompanied by a textual document listing the IMG or DSC number, and corresponding identification about names, event, place, and date, etc.
  • As with paper records, duplicates, confidential records, and other items not meeting BCM&CC’s collecting mandate will need to be removed.

If you are interested in donating items to BCM&CC, please contact Collections (3-D objects) or Archives (paper, photographs, video) staff to discuss your potential donation, by emailing Museum@brucecounty.on.ca or Archives@brucecounty.on.ca  or calling 519-797-2080.    During the initial communication, we may ask some questions about historical significance (creator and user of the items), size, condition, and volume (as outlined further below in “What can I expect at the donation appointment”).

If the items fall within our collecting mandate, we will schedule an appointment with you to further review and/or receive the donation, or confirm arrangements for your method of transferring the items to BCM&CC.

Please do not drop off or send your records before contacting us.

Museum staff will meet with you to review the items you wish to donate for relevancy, collection duplication, condition, and other factors. Staff will ask questions about the historical significance of the items, including who made them, who used them and how were they used, who the individuals/organizations represented in the records are, and whether there are any stories connected to the items.  In general, we will be exploring the subject areas and aspects of Bruce County history that the items reflect. Staff will also ask how the items came to be in your possession.

If your item(s) are accepted into the collection staff will ask you to fill out a Deed of Gift Form, which is a legal agreement between BCM&CC and the donor transferring ownership, and in some cases copyright, to BCM&CC.  For archival items, in particular, the wording on the form is sometimes modified concerning copyright, when necessary.

Yes, if you are unable to visit BCM&CC in person and you have confirmed with staff that items will be accepted into the collection you may mail or ship a donation in most cases. The Deed of Gift form will need to be included with the items being sent.

Shipping/mailing is completed at the donor’s expense. You can speak with BCM&CC staff on how to safely pack your items for delivery. 

Tax receipts may be available upon request at the time of donation if the item has a fair market value. To receive a tax receipt for donations exceeding $1,000, the donation must be accompanied by an appraisal from an accredited source at the donor’s expense.

The Archives prefers that copyright be transferred over to BCM&CC; however, donors who are original creators of the items may have the option to retain copyright and/or establish restrictions on reproduction or use during the copyright term.  Staff are available to discuss the copyright terms to be included in the Deed of Gift.

Sometimes, donations are accepted into the BCM&CC collections with specific display purposes in mind. Usually, however, there are no immediate or definite plans for display. After they are catalogued, donations will be housed in secure, environmentally controlled storage areas so they can be preserved and available for display or research in the future.

When and how an item may be exhibited depends on many factors including, but not limited to: the condition of the object; upcoming exhibition schedules; exhibition themes, goals and scope; physical limitations of the gallery space or display furniture; the discretion of the curators and/or subject matter experts.

The BCM&CC does, however, upload photos and descriptions of items to our publicly accessible Online Collections website, after they are catalogued. You may also see your donation featured in an article on the BCM&CC website, under the Stories and Artefacts section.

The BCM&CC generally does not accept donations with stipulations. Donations are accepted on an unconditional basis, with donors relinquishing their legal title and ownership. With the exception of copyright restrictions, culturally sensitive materials, and compliance with privacy legislation, the BCM&CC will have full discretion as to the storage, use, loan, display (including online), and reproduction (in all forms of media).

Yes! Donors and their descendants can make an appointment to view items in-person at the Museum. We strongly recommend that you call or email to make an appointment in advance, to ensure that meeting space and collections staff are available, and that they have adequate time to retrieve the item(s) from storage and compile relevant documentation.  General admission fees apply (admission is free for Museum Members).

Except under special circumstances, the BCM&CC does not typically purchase artefacts for the collection.